The presence of a variety of animals in various locales can significantly and negatively impact economic, social, or conservation resources. For example, the presence of various bird species in certain locales can negatively impact agriculture, manmade structures, and the aviation industry. The annual economic costs due to the damage caused by birds are estimated at $1.9 billion in the United States alone. Millions in agricultural losses are caused just by European starlings making them the most destructive invasive pest bird in the United States.
Numerous technologies have been developed that attempt to deter birds from roosting in agricultural fields. Such technologies include species-specific alarm calls, predator calls, live predators (e.g., falconers, dogs), or particularly loud noises (e.g., propane exploders) that greatly disturb surrounding communities. The prior art technologies used to deter birds from sensitive areas have generally failed since birds quickly habituate to the scare regimes which make these devices neither effective nor sustainable for a long term application. Scare tactics such as alarm calls have been shown to have reduced effectiveness within a few weeks of application. Making long-term physical habitat changes to manage bird exclusion is not a preferred method of action due to the environmental impact associated therewith. Direct control, such as trapping and euthanizing large numbers of birds to protect industrial structures, has been proven to have minimal impact on the overall bird population in the vicinity of the risk area.
Aircraft collisions with birds cause a serious economic and safety problem. On a worldwide basis, direct and indirect costs to the civil aviation industry owing to bird strikes exceed $1.2 billion annually. In 2011, of the 10,083 wildlife strikes that were reported in the United States, 97.1 percent thereof involved birds. The annual cost of these strikes was estimated to be $718 million in direct and indirect losses. To make matters worse, airport locales frequently attract some bird species because of the presence of resources such as food and nesting sites.
Animals are also adversely impacted and suffer from stress and increased mortality around areas of human habitation, buildings, agriculture and infrastructure. For example, in the United States alone, approximately one billion birds are killed each year by flying into buildings, cell towers, wind turbines, and other man-made structures. Some animals are intentionally killed by humans because of encroachment into areas of human habitation and agriculture.